Laptops are now the most used digital device for working. According to the Pew Research Center, 66% of Americans own two devices and which includes laptops. Laptops definitely make our lives easier, but working for prolonged hours and not maintaining the right posture can severely impact your health. The common signs are sprained wrists, neck pain, and strained eyes. If you’re not careful, these can even turn into chronic pains.
The solution would be to use a desk. Nowadays there are different desks for laptops but two main types are the lap desk and standing desk. There is an ongoing debate about which is the best amongst the two. In this article, we would like to settle it for you and share our opinion on which is the best between a lap desk and a standing desk for a laptop.
Pros of Using Lap Desks
There are plenty of ergonomic lap desks available in the market that help enhance your laptop using experience. Here are the 4 best benefits-
1. Comfortable & Effective
Lap desks are designed in a way that to use it, you will have to maintain the right posture. It offers space for your arms so you do not have to worry about your wrists. Overall, working becomes comfortable yet effective.
2. Reduces Physical Pain
If you are not sitting in the right position with your laptop, then you will have problems in the neck, back, and eye.
If you have a lap desk, then even in the bed you will have to sit in an upwards position reducing the chances of physical pain.
3. Ability to Customize Setup
You can lock your laptop in a fixed position, adjust the height, tilt the screen to match your eyesight level and try out other custom setup ideas to find the sweet spot.
Whether you are on a couch or a bed, a lap desk can always be adjustable.
4. Multiple Features
Lap desks are not just standing for your laptops, A lot of them come with cool features like built-in cooling systems and 360° rotation. They also come in different materials, designs, and are lightweight.
Pros of Using Standing Desks
Sitting too much can cause severe back pain and increase the chances of several other diseases. It is ideal to stand up from time to time and walk when you work.
Standing desks are the ideal solutions for this and provide the following benefits
1. Reduces Back Pain
In a recent study, respondents claim to have a 32% improvement in back pain after using a standing desk for several weeks.
Another study by the CDC claimed that after using sit-stand desks for 4 weeks, upper neck & back pain reduced by 54%.
2. Enhances Energy
People who are used to working on standing desks are less prone to fatigue and have more energy than people who work while sitting all day.
Standing and working may even reduce stress, but this has not been backed by science.
3. Helps in Weight Loss
Standing can burn up to 88 calories per hour. While this is nothing significant, it still helps in reducing the chances of obesity.
While standing you are also using up more energy and generating heat which backs up the fact that standing does indeed help reduce calories.
The Debacle with Standing Desks
There is a lot of talk surrounding sitting and working. Yes, sitting all day long will give back pains, but what does science have to say about standing desks? And is it really that effective?
At first glance, standing desks seem like a logical solution, but the literature on standing desks is very vague. A study by Buckley in 2013, claimed that standing for longer times reduced blood sugar.
However, this was later rejected in 2015 when it was claimed that light physical activities maintained the levels and standing had little to no effect.
A systematic review by MacEwen in 2015 concluded that there was not enough evidence to prove the effectiveness of standing desks that general media proclaims.
Ultimately the result was that long hours of sitting can be tiring and long hours of standing can also be tiring.
Lap Desk vs. Standing Desk
Now that we are done with the scientific factors, here are some basic factors that can help determine which is better amongst the two.
1. Health Benefits & Effects
Lap desks and stand desks have similar health benefits and both are designed to provide the best ergonomic solution to working with a laptop.
But it is safe to assume that most of us are used to working at desks. Initially, it will be hard to get used to standing and working. Standing in one place for a long time will also put pressure on your hips, knees, and feet.
But with a lap desk, you can sit and adjust its position in an ergonomic and comfortable way. Make sure you stand up and walk every few hours and you will be fine.
2. Cost Comparison
Lap desks are clear winners in this category since you can get quality products for just $50. Whereas the prices of quality standing desks can range from $400-$1500 or more.
The best standing desks are the mechanical ones, which are fairly expensive. There are cheaper models, but they tend to be flimsy and making a custom standing desk can be a hassle.
3. Overall Effectiveness
Keep in mind that we are talking about laptops and not desktops. With laptops, you are more used to carrying it around and working in different places.
Changing places can also increase productivity. In this case, you can just pick your lap desk and go to a different room or even the porch and easily set it up to work. You can hardly do that with a standing desk.
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Final Verdict
Because we are talking about laptops, lap desks are more effective simply because of its versatility. The price is also affordable. Both lap desks and standing desks are good equipment for keeping you healthy, but when considering the overall scenario it is safe to assume that you cannot go wrong with a lap desk for your laptop.
